The present invention relates to a light for a cooking apparatus and, more particularly, to a light for illuminating a cooking surface and/or work surfaces of a barbecue grill.
Over seventy-six percent of households in the United States use barbecue grills. One industry association estimates that approximately sixty-nine percent of gas grill owners use their grills year round as the primary household cooking appliance. It has also been confirmed that many grills are used under low light conditions during evening and nighttime hours. Under such conditions, it is difficult for users to manipulate cooked food or monitor the state of food cooked with the grill.
One attempt to provide light for cooking in low light conditions is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,132,055 to Grisamore. There, a tube is attached with separate brackets to the lid of a grill. The tube serves as a handle for the lid and also includes bulbs fixedly disposed within the tube, which can illuminate the grill. Although this construction provides illumination, it requires precise alignment of the tube within the brackets, and the lights—which are fixedly positioned in the tube—with the grilling surface.